It’s Spring! For at least a couple of days until the temperatures sink faster than the Titanic, but for now, the warm weather has got people buying car wash stuff at a record pace and has every gearhead out with their baby. Easily saw ten cars on my wish list yesterday alone. Can’t wait for the warm weather to continue.
Now, as for work…
10. BUYING IN BULK MAKES US VERY HAPPY – I have sold pretty much all of the internals to a 350, the front end to an 80’s S-10, and a lift kit for a K5 Blazer this week. Add to that, the people who are doing their springtime tune-ups…belts, plugs, wires, oil change, and air freshener. Those kinds of sales are dreams, pushing $500+ per sale. In addition, we have truckers and small-time auto repair shops spinning up for the warm weather and they are stocking up like crazy. Warn your shop in advance of what you need and we’ll bend over backwards to help. At least, a good parts shop will…
9. SEE THE DOCTOR FOR THAT – Toyota apparently made a 1995 Tercel STD. Don’t believe me? See the photo. Not only is it in our system, it’s on the dude’s title. I don’t know if it’s the funny smell or if you itch after you touch it…but it does explain why you aren’t getting laid with one.
8. I’M A PARTS SALESMAN. NOT AN ASE-CERTIFIED MECHANIC – More often than not, I get people who think I’m the end-all when it comes to automotive knowledge. I don’t claim to know everything about cars. I’ll try like hell to help, but there are some things that I just don’t know. I will, however, point out that if your “mechanic” left tools, electrical tape and a razor blade under the hood of your DeVille, that you probably are experiencing the results of a half-assed repair job that included day drinking and that you should probably go beat his ass once you realize what this will probably cost you now.
7. GOOGLE IS MY FRIEND If I can’t find something ASAP, like paint code or a translation from my OBD-II reader, I will not hesitate to whip out the smart phone and Google the answer. It’s not like I’m Tweeting your problem to the world. I always inform the customer of what I’m doing when I do break out the phone, and it has come in damn handy a couple of times, especially regarding factory-specific OBD-II codes that the reader isn’t allowed to show. Don’t run to my boss, assuming I needed an Internet porn break from your stupidity.
6. SUBMODELS – This is for the not so automotive minded: Most cars have sub models. Example: Is your ’99 Camaro a “base”, RS, Z28, or SS? We ask this question because it might have a bearing on such items as brakes, suspension components, electronics, and such. It does work the same way on mundane transportation, too. So please, take a look before you walk in. If there is nothing after the model name, it’s probably a base model. Or maybe it’s an “STD”.
5. THAT AIN’T A DRAIN PAN – We recycle oil at my store, and I’m a big fan of the idea. But I’ve seen two people out of the numerous that bring in an actual drain pan of some type to pour out. Milk jugs, orange juice bottles, and (I swear this one) a case of Bud Light cans. Each one filled. I can’t add on to that joke, I don’t know how.
4. BUYING A CAR FROM THE CHEAPEST LOT? YOU’RE GONNA HAVE A BAD TIME – There is a car lot near my store, one of those “Buy Here, Pay Here” types. There are numerous lots like that here, but this one appears to be the lowest of the low. Some of the cars that have been “just bought” there are showing up with some of the most eye-widening repairs…taped-on battery terminal leads, a strut rod that is almost through the hood of the vehicle, and one memorable one, a Buick that would honk the horn when you hit the brakes. A sense of dread falls over me when the customer tells me, “I just bought the car at ________.” It means I’m going to have to deliver bad news in a matter of minutes.
3. DON’T PHONE IT IN – It’s bad enough when I have to translate what the car is doing from the owner in person. But trying to describe a squeak you think you are hearing from the front end over the phone? There is no accuracy there…mostly because I don’t trust your judgment. It’s nothing personal, but if I don’t have the car available to listen to, I cannot be accurate with a lot of things. I feel like I’m guessing on a test I didn’t study for. You feel like you just asked Miss Cleo why your Sonata is making a “whirr!” noise when you turn the wheel.
2. HYGIENE IS NOT OPTIONAL – We help shade tree mechanics, real mechanics, gearheads, farmers, truckers, etc. We are not oblivious to the fact that dirt, grease, mud, cow shit, and various automotive fluids will be present when you walk into our store. We are fine with that. But when the smell of your unwashed ass overrides the fact that you are covered in old gear oil, we have a problem, dude. Lava soap is down aisle 4. Buy three bars and the large pump drum of hand wash and don’t return until soap has met both water AND your nasty ass.
To piggyback off of this one: If you ate at the cheap Mexican place for lunch, or are on a Taco Hell kick, and you let one loose while I’m trying to help you find something in the small parts aisle, I’m gonna disappear, and then reappear with the fruitiest-smelling air freshener we have and hose you with it. This has happened more than I care to mention. Warn me, at least! One guy did, and I thanked him for his thoughtfulness. One guy didn’t. I was talking when my nose and taste buds collectively retched.
1. PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE WORKS! It’s just about springtime. If you’ve been putting things off because it’s too cold, now is the time to check the ride over. In the last couple of days I’ve had no less than four vehicles appear with major brake issues (stuck caliper, ground-down disc, and a disc that had the hat and ring separated into two distinct pieces.) For safety and piece of mind, look the car over thoroughly, or spend a few bucks and let a pro do it. If nothing else, it reduces your time seeing me behind the counter and keeps your spending to a minimum.
I got my ASE Certification in………… Parts……when I worked at Autozone. I got it as a joke to my Dad who was an oil fields fleet mechanic, but once I found out only myself and the assistant store manager passed the test out of like 30 other Autozoner’s we knew there taking the test, I joked less about it at work. Personally I didn’t find the test that difficult, first one done in the room, and actually had my study book Autozone gave me borrowed and lost by a co-worker that lost his own study guide…. Really benchmarked for me the level of “parts” knowledge in the average store =/
When in doubt, and you have the part off..BRING IT with you.. Automakers are a funny thing, if they are out of the brake parts that should go on that model , the line doesn’t stop. it’ll get whatever is avail in the bins..
Many parts will require a few things…. D.O.M. as BUD called it “born on date” Dte of manufacture is needed because that 2006 mustang might have been built in ’05 and have very different parts.. You also may need the vin.. take a photo of it with your cell phone before you walk into the store.. ..
Insurance cards often have VIN numbers on them too. I’ve had that help out when they didn’t have the car but they had an insurance card in their wallet.
“I’ve seen two people out of the numerous that bring in an actual drain pan of some type to pour out”
Riding around with an open drain pan full of oil in your car is a prelude to a mess. Easy to funnel oil from the drain pan into old jugs for mess-free transport, though. Just sayin’.
“I’M A PARTS SALESMAN. NOT AN ASE-CERTIFIED MECHANIC ” . . .
Counter people who don’t spin wrenches are, in my experience, just order takers. The good ones can pass any of the ASE tests.
I’ve got a wide mouthed oil container myself as I was sick of spilling oil pouring it into milk jugs, but I can’t see walking into a parts store with a drain pan, either. Just seems like a bad idea.
most drain pans have a cap and don’t leak or make a mess.. but if you are using the wifes 8×11 cookware.. I can see you making a mess
I’ve made a mess with the old Blitz “capped” drain pans/tanks . . . Just sayin’ Open pans and a funnel are a lot cheaper, too.
Old gallon oil jugs are a great, cheap way to store/ transport used oil . . . .
Kitty litter jugs work great. Even had the local counter tell me how good it was.
Many of us in CANADA, at least, are former mechanics or techs like me. But apparently the standard is a little lower in the US? 🙁
The temptation was killing me. I had to look up what a 1995 Toyota Tercel STD was.
Was it as bad as the usual STDs?
I itched looking at it.
I ask a favor of knowledgeable countermen. When I come to the counter and ask for wheel bearings for a 9 inch Ford, it’s OK to ask some pertinent questions to see if I know what I’m talking about. Just DO NOT keep asking me “what’s it in?” endless times. Similar treatment happens all the time. I finally had to tell the kid “it’s in a ’56 Chevy. Now HOW does that help you?” Kinda went downhill from there.
too true..the 351 in my 73 Falcon coupe came from a 78 Fairlane – but had been recond and is actually a 1970 block so it has a mix of parts from (at least those 3 years – and that example is all Ford. God knows how a full on mix n match hot rod would go…but yes, I’ll go in to buy a part, knowing what I want, even bringing in the stuffed part for reference – and you still get the yes but what model is it off line…its great to read the words of wisdom from a parts guy that actually has a clue but the reality is that for every one that does know what he’s talking about there are 20 who are 17 years old and have absolutely no idea. One guy was convinced, when I asked him for a harmonic balancer, that his mates had put me up to it `because theres no such thing’ – he wasn’t even convinced after we found one in the store!!
John, my experience with Aussie cars would leave most of the uneducated lost in a sea of alphabet soup:
“I need a part for a Falcon.”
“Okay, lemme see here…um..uh…XK, XT, XB, XG, ED, BF, FG…aw, f*@% it, I’m gonna go flip burgers!”
But it would be nice to narrow down which car it came out of, and our catalogue lookups don’t start with “Ford –> Rear End –> 9.00″…. Neither do the paper catalogues. Truck, fullsize or mid-size Ford will give us a starting point, then you can click on “rear end” and then “axle bearings” and then look at the diameter, and compare it to yours. I know off the top of my head which one to start with, but you can’t expect all parts guys to.
57 Chevy Sedan Delivery… Needed a battery…right?
Why ask me if it is 6 or 12 volts when they did not come with 6?
Bucket seats? ( yes but got a caddy bench now)
AC? (yes the windows roll down)
It went on… I went elsewhere,
Yes, I had the dead battery with me!
Bob, some of the computer-punching “order takers” don’t seem to have much common sense, IMO.
I really like this perspective….great idea . Have had good and bad parts guys over the years. It’s not their fault if your part is not in stock. Never had a problem with most things getting it later that day or the next. Take your hosed part with you if you can.
u.p.g.–i feel your pain ,buddy—i work with the public on their cars too—i love the rambling that goes on when they tell you all about what great mileage they get,how their uncle had one just like it,how “rare” it is,etc…. everything but what they actually came in for……jeez,people—-get a clue—we’re busy,the guy behind you has stuff to do,too!—the worst are a tossup between the old retired farts,who don’t have anything going on,so they want to chat endlessly,and the know-it-all,who found all his answers on the internet,and god help you if you disagree with the answers he found!
I restore a different 60s-70s Jap motorcycle every winter. I stopped at the local Honda dealer to order some small parts for a 75 CB750. I had the part #s and told the new kid at the counter need to order parts for a 75 CB750. “Uh, what make is that?” was his first question. Sudden flash of advancing age. That bike went out of production 15 yrs before he was born.
I’ve found it easier to have the part numbers on hand before going. They still look at it like its written in code, but they eventually get there.
While we do have some knowledgeable guys, we get a lot of shall we say, “goobers” at the parts stores around here. One in particular made me laugh when he asked if my ’72 Chevelle had one headlight or four… I knew what he meant, but his co-workers gave him hell for it.
Next time you are breaking out your cell phone, tell the car owner you posting a picture of that underhood disaster on Facebook.
So, me bringing in used oil in used kitty litter bottles is a no, no?
Guess I should’ve been a little more clear on this: Open drain pans weren’t thought of when I was writing this. Of course don’t throw those in the car, that’s Exxon Valdez II waiting to happen. The kitty litter jug is actually a pretty good idea, provided there’s no more kitty litter or dust inside (we actually look for contamination, it costs us in fines if it ends up in our big container.)
Forget the Bud Light cans for your used oil, Bud Light 40 oz bottles-much better.
eBottom Line Is, If You Have A Custom Ride, Dont Expect A Counter Guy To Know What Every Part Came Off Of. When I Order Parts For The Motor In My 72 Chevy And The Guys Ask For YeAr Make And Model, I Tell Them What They Need To Know (96 Chevy Corvette BlahBlah) No NeEd To Be An Asshat And Roll Your Eyes Telling Them Its In A 72 Chevy Just To Jack With Them.
^This. Just tell them what the parts came from. Avoids confusion every time.
For me, the sub-model one is tough. As an experienced counterperson, I know that a Z24 Cavalier is a 2.4, or that there IS a front wheel drive Audi A4, so asking “is it Quattro” is perfectly valid. But there’s plenty of cars where asking the sub-model is pointless. Most Honda Civics for example, unless it’s an EX/Si, are basically the same underneath. And most of the time when my catalogue asks me if a Chevy pickup is an extended cab when I’m looking for U-joints, it doesn’t actually narrow it down for me ANYWAY, and just wants to know if it’s an aluminum or steel shaft.
So that aspect of the job comes with experience. It’s fun to watch a complete n00b on the counter ask the customer all these questions that are basically pointless, and see how the customer reacts. Sometimes it IS important, though.
It is tough, but that’s the difference between the gearhead/experienced guy vs. the n00b…knowing which questions are flat out idiotic.
I am blessed with 2.5 NAPA guys that really know what they are talking about and know my requests are not likely going on the vehicle the part is coming off of AND actually assists me in finding solutions to my mix matching of parts. Way cool guys I like dealing with.
The .5 guy is an old semi-retired part-time guy that is awesome most the time, but still gets a bit tripped up on some of my abstract parts when I don’t have a specific vehicle to pull from. Most times though, he’s pretty awesome.